My first public post will be a general introduction to infertility. Bust some myths, tell some truths. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to message me or leave me a comment. Otherwise, enjoy!!
Did you know that 1 in 8 couples of child bearing age will
deal with some form of infertility?
If you decide to actively try getting pregnant, doctors will
tell you that once you are off of birth control it should take no longer than 6
months to have your first pregnancy. If you are under the age of 35 and have
been trying for over a year and are still not pregnant, you should see your
doctor to be checked out for any abnormalities or any issues that may be
causing infertility. If you are over 35 and trying to get pregnant for 6 or
more months with no success, you should see your doctor. By visiting your
doctor and having them run a couple of simple tests, they may find the cause of
your infertility or direct you to a Reproductive Endocrinologist who can help.
Who It Affects…
Infertility does not just affect women. Infertility can be
broken down into male infertility, female infertility, a combination of both or
unexplained infertility. Infertility is
not “in the head” and in many cases, calming down or “relaxing” will have no
effect on the couple and conceiving. In many cases, infertility could stem from
childhood illnesses, cancer treatments, steroid use in medications such as
puffers, gene issues or hormone levels.
Educate Yourself…
Do you have irregular periods or have been diagnosed with
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome or Endometriosis? Did you suffer from a childhood cancer, suffer from asthma and need to take puffers as a child? If you wish to have biological
children and are still single, you should talk to your doctor or specialists
about your options. Don't be afraid to get checked out! We check for AIDS, cancer, and other sicknesses so why not check the status of your fertility? A bit of prep early on can save you and your spouse thousands of dollars
down the road in expensive infertility treatments.
Canadian Facts…
Did you know that in Canada, our public health care refuses
to cover infertility treatments? And most insurance companies refuse to cover
anything related to infertility because they consider children to be a
“lifestyle choice”. Yet our public health care covers other elective surgeries
such as sex change operations.
In Ontario, a small portion of your infertility costs will
be covered by the government if you suffer from blocked fallopian tubes, but if
you suffer from any other forms of infertility you are required to cover all of
the costs associated with infertility out of pocket.
The province of Quebec is the only province in Canada who will cover
treatments. If you are a resident of Quebec, the province with cover 3 rounds
of in vitro fertilization (IVF) before you are expected to cover any costs
associated to it.
Why Should It Be Covered?...
Internationally, many countries cover infertility without batting so much as an eyelash. They also offer tax credits for couples going through the adoption process. Contact your local politician and ask them what their stance is on family and the family making process. Because if we don't tell the government that its important to us, they will never do anything to help couples struggling.
Statistics have shown that if fertility treatments were covered, it would actually save the government money in the health care sector. Many couples can only afford one try at IVF so many are willing to take the chance by implanting multiple embryos. By doing this, the chances are greater for multiple births. Multiple child pregnancies are considered high risk. High risk pregnancies put greater pressure on the services offered for pregnancy. High risk requires more blood work, ultra sounds and tests. It also results in more pre-term deliveries which means the children and mother require longer hospital stays, corrective surgeries, longer NICU stays and less open beds available to the public. If infertility treatments were covered, more rounds of IVF with just one embryo would mean lower chances of twins and triplets.
It’s All The Same, Right?...
No it’s not. Infertility is a broad diagnosis. Infertility
can be broken down into these categories:
Male Factor- This is a problem on the side of the male. Low
sperm count, no sperm at all, or poor quality of the sperm present. And then of
course you have the causes behind that: injuries stemming from childhood, cancer
and chemo treatments, they were born that way, or chromosomal abnormalities.
Female Factor- This is a problem with the female
reproductive organs. Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome where there are cysts growing
on the ovaries that prevent proper cycles. Endometriosis, blocked fallopian tubes,
premature ovarian failure or poor egg quality. Other causes could be cancer and
chemo treatments.
Repeat Pregnancy Loss- where the couple has no problems
trying to conceive but have yet to have a pregnancy that doesn’t end via
miscarriage or stillbirth. Sometimes there could be something male or female
factor undiagnosed playing its part in this, but sometimes there is no cause
for it.
Unexplained Infertility- both male and female have been checked out by specialists and nothing was found that caused the infertility.
Of course, the last option could be a combination of any of
the options above. A couple may not be able to get pregnant because of PCOS and
a low sperm count. Another option for
infertility is also situational infertility.
Situational infertility would be cases where there was no way for a natural conception could happen. GLBT who have decided to have kids have various options like surrogacy, sperm or egg donors or adoption.
Situational infertility would be cases where there was no way for a natural conception could happen. GLBT who have decided to have kids have various options like surrogacy, sperm or egg donors or adoption.
Breaking The Bank…
Health care and most insurance carries refuse to fund
fertility treatments because they categorize the condition as a “lifestyle
choice”. Because of this, many couples trying to conceive are faced with paying
for very expensive privatized treatments out of pocket.
Most fertility clinics, when referred, will first tell you
that the moment your file is referred to them, everything becomes an out of pocket
cost. As an example, I will provide a general outline of overlying costs for
Chris and I to go fertility treatments at our closest fertility clinic (5 hours
away):
1st consultation: $165.00 – included meeting with
Urologist to gather a detailed medical history, go over results from blood work
and semen samples.
Each follow up appointment: $75.00 (if not associated with
an active treatment cycle)
Travel: $350.00 each trip for gas and food. We have an
arrangement with family to stay with them during our trips.
IVF registration
fee: $250.00
Medication needed for one (1) round of IVF: $3000.00 (not
covered by medical insurance)
One (1) round of IVF: $8000.00 (not covered through MSI or
insurance)
1 trip up for egg retrieval: $350.00
1 trip back up for the Embryo transfer (Approx. 5 days later
if we have viable embryos to use in the transfer): $350.00
Depending on how many eggs they retrieve and how many
embryos they successfully create, the remaining would need to be cryogenically
frozen til we either used them or offered them up for embryo donation or
donated to science. : $200.00 yearly storage fee.
If the first round of IVF doesn’t work but we still have
embryos left to use, we can use a frozen embryo transfer for $850.00 but that’s
only if the embryos survive the thaw.
This procedure is the only viable one for us because of the
low sperm count. All this to put my egg and his sperm in a petri dish and hope
that they take and if they do they put them back in me and hope for the best.
If this does not work, we may have to go through another cycle of IVF. So
another 8 grand for the procedure and another 3 grand for medication I would
need to use again. Then we would have to move onto Intracytoplasmic Sperm
Injection (ICSI) where they actually take a sperm and physically
insert it into the egg via a very small needle. And that’s not cheap either: $1500.00 for just the ICSI on top of the 12 grand already needed for IVF.
See, it’s not cheap. And we are not made of money. To be
able to do this, I will have to get a second job and bank all extra money from
that job and any extra money from my normal pay to be able to afford one chance
at this.
And that concludes your introduction infertility.
Questions?
